The 'Biology' of Horizon Zero Dawn

Ever wondered how the machines of Horizon: Zero Dawn function? Join us on our nature-documentary style deep-dive into an artificial ecosystem.
---
Curious Archive Social Media:
Twitter: / curious_archive
Instagram: / curiousarchive
Imagine an ecosystem made entirely of autonomous machines. Where every ecological niche is filled by an artificial organism. In the video game ‘Horizon: Zero Dawn’ and it’s sequel ‘Horizon: Forbbiden West’ a global calamity has led to a version of planet Earth inhabited by animal-mimicking machines - from mighty herbivores to deadly predators. While these synthetic creatures might not be ‘biological,’ their fascinating interactions, unique behavioral patterns, and hidden intricacies make them worthy of study.
The story takes place thousands of years in the future, but a little thing like the flow of time isn’t going to stop this archivist from doing his fieldwork. So, for this entry into the archive, I’ll lead us on another documentary style expedition, investigating the artificial ‘biology’ of these intriguing machines and revealing what animal roles they fill. We’ll need, though, to stay alert-there are constant dangers in this environment.
Now, let’s leap forward in time, and discover an ecosystem of metal and wire...
0:00 Machines of Horizon: Zero Dawn
1:14 Strider
3:45 Watcher
5:20 Grazer
6:53 Sawtooth
8:28 Longleg
9:43 Scrapper
11:13 Shell-Walker
12:56 Glinthawk
14:54 Snapmaw
16:24 Bellowback
17:36 Behemoth
19:04 Thunderjaw
20:28 Tallneck
22:00 The Next Horizon…
Copyright Disclaimer: Under section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976, allowance is made for “fair use” for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, education, and research. All video/image content is edited under fair use rights for reasons of commentary.
I do not own the images, music, or footage used in this video. All rights and credit goes to the original owners.
♫ Music by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com):
Beauty Flow, Firesong, Impact Lento, Majestic Hills, Bittersweet, Floating Cities
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
#CuriousArchive #Horizon #SpeculativeBiology

[@entropic-decay]

slight correction regarding the reason for the machines to exist in-world the majority of the machines were originally designed to terraform earth after the biosphere was destroyed. The humans created by this terraforming system, unaware of the reason for the machines' existence, began to hunt the machines for parts, and so the subsystem of the terraforming system responsible for designing and constructing the machines began creating more dangerous ones that are designed to defend the rest.

[@juanarredondo9763]

and thus, evolution, but with a twist

[@d4s0n282]

bruh guess I got spoiled but I guess its my fault reading these oop

[@antwango]

@@d4s0n282 lol not really really spoilt... unless the paragraph stops you playing horizon fullstop! thats just one bit of detail of the world....

[@firekeeperiswaifu3092]

That is correct but it should also be told that those defense mechanisms only started after the subsystem became independent of the overall system.

[@SirKolass]

Too bad GAIA had to introduce humans to the world, earth and all animals would be more than fine by themselves, humans are basically a slow version of the faro plague. Humans are so shtty they even started to disrupt her work lol Hephaestus is the real mvp.

[@theorigamiking8783]

Definitely one of the most creative game concepts ever.

[@ZZ-vl5nd]

Seriously, one of my favorites. I was sad to finish the first one. Waiting eagerly for the PC port of forbidden west.

[@matheussanthiago9685]

right? and to think that they did the world-building backwards like the original concept was ''a game where you fight mecha-dinosaurs with bow and arrow'' then they worked everything else from there, and ended up with one of the best world in game of the last decade kinda of reminds me of How Miura (rest in peace) come up with the world of Berserk, if first thought of Guts with this huge hunk of metal as sword, and then build a world around with mosters that required just sword to be fought

[@samuelvabddraig2796]

I'm glad you thought so, but I couldn't help thinking the opposite. With advanced technology from a forgotten time roaming the land you could really let your imagination run wild, but it's just a one to one with metal animals, basically Digimon.

[@J-manli]

@@kishirisu1268 I mean is logic all that necessary to have fun? Plus the game's story and lore does explain why the robot animals exist in the first place fairly well.

[@sand_sand7304]

The weirdest it is not

[@malwareinc]

I love how detailed the machines are, especially with the textures.

[@neo-filthyfrank1347]

Yeah it generally seems designing machines is a lot more difficult than designing organic lifeforms on account of all the small parts that require more detail to drawn and really needing to know what all of those are for.

[@logan317b]

It's so cool to look at all the details in-game after you killed a machine, especially the giant ones

[@neo-filthyfrank1347]

@@logan317b On second thought I hope this channel doesn't do more mainstream speculative evolution stuff like this. After watching the video the concept seems executed fairly poorly in addition to the creature designs being far, far too reminiscent of specific contemporary earthly life, which seems to follow when larger companies try their hand at this stuff. The art usually defaults to someone who barely even knows or cares about this sort of thing and thus doesn't understand the intricacies enough to turn in an intelligent product.

[@alyseleem2692]

​@@neo-filthyfrank1347 ..... I beg your pardon? I know the video doesn't explain everything, but what makes you think it was executed poorly? The machine design, I mean? Because it has too many animals you're familiar with? Are you kidding me? Oh, you wanna know WHY they look that way. That is a valid question, but it's answer is a big fat spoiler. Plus, animal designs are generally better for their kind of long-term operation, especially since they fill their former niches. There is another reason, though.

[@floridaman6572]

@@neo-filthyfrank1347 I’ve played the game and while I would prefer the machines to be less “animalistic” to call the product unintelligent is a stupid statement in it of itself. The purpose of the game wasn’t to create a well thought out speculative ecosystem but rather to bring the consumer joy in an immersive open world, where combat and exploring are the sole purpose of the game. As for your point on big companies, id like to mention that every company is out there to make a buck or two, if you’ve ever played the game then you’d know that there definitely was extra thought put into the product other than just money. Strangely enough this is not the first comment I’ve seen from your channel. It seems as though from the other comments that you have made across the internet that you are very critical of other’s work. Being a contrarian isn’t cool, sometimes it’s just better to enjoy something instead of complaining about it.

[@Nukesnipe]

I always liked how the different categories of machines in HZD followed the themes of recon, acquisition, terraforming and transportation. Lancehorns mine raw materials from the ground, which get transported by Behemoths, while Shell-Walkers transport already packaged goods. And in-game, it even points out areas where transport-class machines will follow a supply route to and from different areas, usually near Cauldrons. While this gives the image of a migrating herd, it also makes perfect sense considering what their purpose is. Then you have machines like the Snapmaw, whose purpose is to regulate water supplies and ensure that they don't become toxic, while Stormbirds were directly responsible for repairing the atmosphere.

[@edoardoprevelato6577]

Yeah, but those snapmaws could keep the water in check without gangbanging me with their ranged attacks anytime i cross a goddamn puddle

[@ChrissieBear]

@@edoardoprevelato6577 Blame Hephaestus. xD

[@edoardoprevelato6577]

@@ChrissieBear i do and it didn't end well for him/it

[@juanarredondo9763]

​@@ChrissieBear blame humans for attacking first, hephaestus just did what it was progamed to do, build machines for many reasons

[@ThomasTRL]

@@juanarredondo9763 Hephaestus was programmed to not hurt humans, but the eradication signal corrupted him, just like it did with hades.

[@imlewishehe]

I've always wanted to see a video like this, where it's an animal documentary within the world of Horizon. It's just a perfect setting for such a thing. I can't wait for an inevitable video on Horizon: Forbidden West, and the many new machines in the new regions

[@nenmaster5218]

Telltale Atheist, i recommend him. Especially his Kat Kerr Videos if you love to laugh.

[@alansokelisatruehero8520]

the first wasn't that bad but Forbidden west was HOLY fk WOKE. i literally lost track on who was binary and who gay lover was whos and how they identified. When the Trans Politics was thrown in and the male fighter that wanted to wear female armor they used american partisan political quotes like the SJW writer and developer it was only another small step to have my video game lecture me about pronouns. some might love woke hypocrisy and this game is for them. enjoy. ill play awesome non woke AF games.

[@imlewishehe]

@@alansokelisatruehero8520 Take your dogshit takes, and gross views elsewhere

[@alansokelisatruehero8520]

​@@imlewishehe ​ gross? dog poo? heterosexuality is disgusting? criticizing woke politics injected into everything is very legit and only woke karens get triggered like you over it. everything triggers groomers these day. can you please at least stop with the small children, that is universally disgusting and shunned, you all should be ASHAMED sexualizing other peoples children. the disturbing part is lefties self righteousness. now go protest stand up comedy that triggers you and report this for hurting your feelings like i know you want to, having to know people don't approve of you fondling kids is necessary, hopefully shaming groomers will protect at least one that you will target later.. disgusting. truly twisted are those that target small children and call it social justice, so when you call us names it's almost an honor to be opposed by and insulted by groomers. you aren't going to be able to fondle freely much longer.

[@victorhernandeziii4371]

I suggest you go to random side quest channel the while channel has multiple videos detailing every creature and lore from the game

[@that1cat999]

I’m going to say that there is actually a storyline in these videos. I’m also gonna say Curious came to this world after time dilation caused by traveling to and from 45-46b and thought; “No apocalypse is gonna stop me!!!”

[@ingram878]

Wat?

[@thecrowfather1919]

He could be apart of that group from horizon forbidden west

[@philthephilosopher9235]

@@ingram878 Wut?

[@warioseggs]

@@ingram878 wot?

[@robinbennett1686]

@@ingram878 4546b is the Subnautica planet

[@alexcunradi6034]

If you're interested in sci-fi or post-apocalyptic games, you have to give Zero Dawn a try. A great story, great characters, great combat, and a great open world. Can't recommend it enough.

[@jimmybuba2683]

What about the soundtrack is it good?

[@ZalYagunRyai]

@@jimmybuba2683 some songs especially in serious cutscenes but it's like most open world games with it just existing to fill up silence

[@matheussanthiago9685]

@@ZalYagunRyai yeah, I got to agree with this one I'm a huge HZD fan, but I must admit that the least noticeable aspect of that game is the soundtrack everything else tho, S tier

[@wildspirewarrior211]

During some of the big action scenes the music slaps but overall it's mostly ambient background music letting you take in the environment. Just beware of the jungle because I'm not going to spoil it but you really have to pay attention to your surroundings in that region

[@floridaman6572]

@@matheussanthiago9685 the thunder jaw/storm bird theme is rather ominous. It’s always cool when you get close to one of the two and the theme starts playing.

[@fang609]

In a nutshell. Dont aproach any machine,keep distance and out of sight. Unless a certain flame haired young woman is around. Then your 100% safe. Jokes aside its really incredible what the team behind the game did with the machines in this game. Their models are incredible in the bits there made of,animated and texture, Id say these are the best robbots in any media. As for within the games context Gaia really did an incredible job rebuilding the bioshpere, and Hephaestus arming machines to defend them from humans as well as creating machines purely made for combat is qutie the sight indeed (tho they get even more dangerous and leathal further west)

[@kami3726]

borderlands 2 angel: COME AT ME BRO

[@TAKIZAWAYAMASHITA]

until you as a human remember you idiots made machines and someone with a brain invents an eletrical trap or an emp knock the robot offline and start hacking it to do what you want, then send this code to the rest

[@Orangecataura]

Looking at how rare natural redheads are in real life, she may very well be the only red head in what was known as the US.

[@octaviamoore242]

Unless you’re that one girl from burning shores that got squashed by a slaughter spine

[@KaneyoriHK]

The designs are really good, there's a lot of moving parts, and they're realistic, and it's really cool to watch them move. To me, they're simply amazing works.

[@shmup6955]

And then aloy just murders all of them

[@Replicaate]

I absolutely love the machine 'beasts' of this world. They're both wonderfully imaginative yet highly plausible given the level of technology the 'ancients' in the Horizon-verse had at their disposal, and also aesthetically quite beautiful in their way. I think my personal favorites are the Thunderjaw and Sawtooth (and the Ravager, unseen here) - their 'inspiration' being extinct predators is clear, but they're also efficiently sparsely mechanical enough to feel not just like cheesy robot versions of a dinosaur or a sabertooth.

[@julzyboy8960]

Really? To me they are pretty unimaginative and cheesy. I'd give them a 2/10 in creativity.

[@ariescouts2883]

@@julzyboy8960 bruh

[@nadarith1044]

@@julzyboy8960 Clearly your tastes suck

[@abyssal-z]

@@julzyboy8960 you serious?

[@somerandomdudeonline637]

@@julzyboy8960 bruh they're supposed to mimic animals ofc they're going to be like that

[@The_Story_Of_Us]

I like how the machines are built like actual animals. Not just like classic robots , but they have almost mechanical muscles like we do, built out of these metal fibres that contract and lengthen like muscles do to control movement.

[@jacobwells1277]

I absolutely love that Curious made a KZbin video on this video game, because it's my favorite video game of all time, and I love it when it gets this kind of recognition. I really hope he makes a sequel on the second game Horizon Forbidden west and its machines.

[@LosJoshh]

Same, hopefully he’ll cover the few machines added in Frozen Winds as well

[@jakomioftherose2434]

If this is your favorite game of all time then you haven't played much, have you.

[@jacobwells1277]

@@jakomioftherose2434 correction then, one of my favorite games of all time. There are fake that I have played which are better

[@samtrudeau8596]

There is a similar symbiotic relationship between ostriches, zebra, and wildebeest where the ostrich acts as look out of sort

[@Ben_The_First]

Props to the cameraman, went to the future just to show us what the creatures will look like.

[@LuDux]

"I must stay from them as far as possible" *films from under their tails*

[@Mahlak_Mriuani_Anatman]

​@@LuDux 😂

[@weallstilldie]

My father and I, around maybe six years ago played this by taking turns. I would have difficulty climbing and I remember getting so upset while my dad pointed at the yellow highlighted spots where you could climb onto. I was so bad at the game. But it was so fun to game with my dad, who's witnessed the begging of gaming. (World of Warcraft kind of games). He shaped and mentored my gaming skills into now. I love him so much, he's one of the two men in this world that I love, the other one being my brother.

[@ColonelSanders493]

Absolute massive W

[@floofyfluff2736]

I literally started this game last week and thought that it would be cool if he made a video on it

[@edoardoprevelato6577]

This game is one of the best open world action adventures around. The worldbuilding is immense, and the storyline will bring you to tears

[@keqingsimp2174]

@@edoardoprevelato6577 every time i get to the post-credit scene i cry. ive replayed 6 times and sobek's end still get me

[@edoardoprevelato6577]

@@keqingsimp2174 i know, right? That woman had more balls than all NBA courts put together.

[@jacobcox4565]

It's crazy how similar these synthetic animals are to real animals, they're the same thing, just made different from organic, carbon-based life. Like a math problem that can be solved in more than one way.

[@juanarredondo9763]

hephaestus was analyzing the enviroment and saw how to make a robot efective in an area, it took inspiration in the animal kingom, same as humans with some vehicles

[@julzyboy8960]

The problem is that they are too similar to the point that it's unrealistic and also boring to me personally. In reality these robots would have their own character, they wouldn't just be: robot rhino, robot horse, robot vulture etc. For the same reason that animals dont just look exactly like each other, even when they fill a similar niche eg: Horse/Ostrich, Crow/Bat, hippo/croc. But if anything they should be even more different since they are not limited by evolution. The only reason I can think of why they didn't consider this is that they simply don't have the creativity.

[@hedgehog3180]

@@julzyboy8960 Well I mean it's implied that they're created by a machine learning algorithm and it would probably have been fed data about real world animals so it's not surprising that it ends up creating somewhat similar thing. It might also have been an intentional bias in the hope that if they looked more like animals future humans would find them less threatening.

[@nadarith1044]

​@@julzyboy8960 I'm sorry are you calling biomimicry unrealistic? wtf?

[@jacobcox4565]

@@julzyboy8960 you do realize designing robots based on animals would be way easier than designing unique robots to do the same thing animals do. People who build robots take a lot of inspiration from the animal kingdom, submersible robots with fins like a fish, flying drones with bird-like feet, personal companion robots that look like dogs.

[@susangardini8161]

The concept of machine life is rare to see! This is amazing!

[@bonkproof4086]

As someone who’s gotten %100 completion on horizon, I was wondering when someone would do a video breaking down the machines like this.

[@neilc.8368]

I love your videos so much! I’m eagerly waiting for when part 5 of The Epic of Serina comes out, granted I’ve read so far what happens, it’s nice to hear other people share how amazing the story is.

[@nenmaster5218]

Telltale Atheist, i recommend him.

[@IDK-df4cw]

The fact that I finished the game and I know everything about the lore of horizon zero dawn gives me something to be proud of

[@alyseleem2692]

Yep.

[@hakimdiwan5101]

Can you please tell me how we got animals like machines?

[@alyseleem2692]

@@hakimdiwan5101 It's a big spoiler, so you OK with that? Seriously. If you're gonna play it, it won't hit the same. You should experience it for yourself if you play the game.

[@hakimdiwan5101]

@@alyseleem2692 Yeah I'm fine I don't play games just want to know the concept.

[@alyseleem2692]

@@hakimdiwan5101 OK. This might take a bit. So,long story short: In the mid to late 21st century, after a period of instability and global Catastrophes caused by climate change, science took off in fields like robotics, at first to create methods to help fix climate change, with simple, normal looking drones being the first kind used in this endeavour. However, after a while, people started applying this to other fields, and one of those fields was war. Under the pretense of lessening human casualties, people started creating standardised " Swarms" , machines built for war instead of humans. They weren't intelligent, if that's what you're asking. Just like the drones, they were normal, relatively speaking. The exceptions were Titan-classes, large machines which were resistant to nuclear attack and were capable of calculating battle plans. Like your computer playing chess, but better and big enough to crush fortresses. One company, Faro Robotics, sought to create a Swarm to take over the market. A perfect storm, so to speak. And so, they got to work. The end result was the Faro Swarm. The Faro Swarm was a Swarm of still-relatively normal looking machines, albeit with legs instead of wheels for locomotion over different types of terrain. They had at least three types, but the important thing is their advantages: 1. Like Striders later on, the Swarm was capable of processing biomatter into fuel, with methods adapted from 2020 military research in the US, as well as previous experiments and uses of algae and other materials. 2. Their Titan units,BRO7 Horus, were capable of gathering materials to create more of them, using the fabrication technology later used in the Cauldrons. They were also highly advanced and adaptable at their battle plans, reacting to new situations on the fly. 3. They were nigh-unhackable, and their hacking methods on other machines were nearly unstoppable, due to them using nanomachines for direct physical invasion of their targets. All in all, perfect product. Too perfect. Before you ask, no, they didn't exactly become conscious and rebel against humanity. All that happened..... Was a glitch. Specifically, in their biofuel protocols. Due to confusion regarding biofuel sources, a glitch caused the Swarm to see all beings, including their owners and humans in general, as potential biofuel. And rightly so. All biomatter can be processed. At first, it didn't really act on this urge except in frequent bouts of random conversion, like killing and absorbing trees or dolphins, but in hindsight, it was probably focusing on increasing it's numbers. By the time it's superiors ordered it to stand down after an engagement... . It killed them all. And it had enough numbers to keep going. War began, and humanity fought for the right of their survival, Operation Enduring Victory and then,succeeded..... Right? Right?! I mean, humanity is still here, right?! No. Not really. To the horror of scientists, thanks to the Swarm's previous investment in numbers and it's existing ability of self-replication and gathering biofuel from any source, it was literally impossible to stop them. They could only slow them down. Their codes would take at least fifty years for hack using their most advanced programs, thanks to using polyphasic coding. It was over. Or was it? They started a project. A project using all that Faro Robotics had managed to achieve, as well as all that money could buy, to create a system of machines to re-terraform the earth, and bring back life after the inevitable inactivation of the Faro Swarm, led by a sentient AI raised in this timeframe. The animal machines you see are that system of machines. Snapmaws clean waters. Grazers help both limit and grow more vegetation. Scrappers work to clean the scrap. Glinthawks do the same and use their coolant to clean the atmosphere. The reason all these resemble animal is that,aside from efficiency, the AI that made them had to be taught using biomimicry, imitating natural animals. It didn't have the time or ability to make it's own designs that quickly for that many kinds of drones, so it did it the easy way and imitated nature. As a sentient being,it also did this as a tribute to our world and the beings that lived in it. They are a memorial to all that we destroyed. In secret facilities, humans, plant seeds and small animals would be cloned,stored, and then spread to the wild, and so, after a few centuries of being a lifeless rock, Earth came back to life.... And that was that.

[@zacharyreed2347]

I love the small machine details in the game. If you watch Shell-Walkers when their cargo gets knocked off, they use some form of gravity manipulator in their claw to pick up the cargo and hold it on their backs. Snapmaws will soak in the waters, then come up on land and eject several pods of chillwater from their backs (the little empty spheres on their tail then get filled with more chillwater). So many cool small details

[@jeremycreations8608]

Not only are you good at finding interesting things, but your also incredible with storytelling and writing, every time a see one of your videos in my subscription feed I get exited because I know you found something good. Love your videos

[@Pixelcakes69]

oh my god I can't escape my past self. Help me.

[@supercharged5-39]

because shell walkers care about their cargo so much, if you break the binding holding their boxes, the shell walker will use its claw to pick it up and attempt to fasten it on its back, holding it with its claw.

[@donniemontoya9300]

Some of the coolest animation and concept design EVER. The different textures, details, and lighting effects are amazing to look at.

[@TheFirstCurse1]

This is an amazing video that deserves millions of views. You perfectly showcased every machine and their purpose, all the while narrating it like a nature documentary. Easily one of the best videos I've ever watched.

[@pacotaco1246]

Please do one of these for the aliens in the Borderlands series. There is so much content to explore from the native life on Pandora to the mystery of the advanced Erudians

[@ChaosIvanov]

What intrigues me most is the fictional biology that we always imagine being more extraordinary than the real one, even though it shares intrinsic characteristics with the real ones. It must be a semiotic trap.

[@ebixxdracion]

The moment I saw a thunderjaw in the game, my sole goal was to make a pet out of it. Quest be damned! I wanted a pet T-rex with 50mil gatlings and rocket launchers. And by the gods I got ALL of them. (The funny part of this is that apparently Horizon was created backwards. As in, someone said "Hey let's make a game with robot animals," And they built the story backwards from there.)

[@Pyrochazm]

A channel called noclip does a deep dive into the production behind the game, I highly recommend it.

[@ebixxdracion]

@@Pyrochazm Thanks

[@HUYI1]

You can by overriding it from the cauldrons...

[@ebixxdracion]

@@HUYI1 Uhm... yeah... I know... I said I got all of them. You didn't read the complete comment, did you?

[@mariofan1ish]

That sounds about right, honestly. The world, societies, machines and lore are all fleshed out exceptionally well and are incredibly intriguing and immersive. But the actual plotline and characters fall a bit flat

[@katesay1559]

The uniqueness of the machines makes this game visually stunning and incredible when it comes to fighting. You really have to understand how the machines are built, what are their weaknesses and how to exploit them. Like the fact that you can make deathbringers overheat and then shoot at their cooling rods... The creators of the game did an awesome job at combining aesthetic and gameplay, and making those things interdependant.

[@fishbowlpig]

These machines look so cool! thank you for enlightening me about this game

[@MoralsInSongs]

I absolutely adore how CA manages to make these videos so true to life. I'm not sitting listening to a KZbinr as they detail every step in the same monotone step-by-step feature. I'm with CA as he perilously traverses the land of Horizon, with great respect and awe to the creatures within. Amazing!

[@_TSC_46]

Something i realized last night was that the Longleg is not shaped after the ostrich, its based off of the Secretarybird. The 'feather crown' made of sensors on top of its head are identical to that of a Secretary bird, not to mention the stomping and jumping the machine does!

[@aceundead4750]

Im glad there's a channel that delves into the biology of fictional universes, beyond just Monster Hunter (which i thoroughly enjoyed your cover of Monster Hunter's creatures and hope you do more), it's nice to see more than just that covered somewhere.

[@pinetorch7876]

Do biology of no man's sky. It's got so much species, and even though all of it is randomly generated its interesting to see what lifeforms are on each planet

[@ezmoneye7661]

Was waiting for this to get added to the archive, fits perfect

[@i.washere]

I was in awe throughout the whole video, i was so lost in my imagination i lost the sense of time, it didnt felt like 20 minutes it was an unexplainable experience that i became very emotional when i saw the tallneck they are fascinating and magical despite their metallic look. Thank you for this curious archive you might not know this but you make my life so much better, I wish you all success and happiness ♥️

[@DarshanBhambhani]

When I first discovered your channel, I literally said I wish he does one on Horizon, and now you did, thank you

[@BabyShenanigans]

Wonderful video and one of my favorite games of all time! I do wish you had gone into additional detail about the habits of some of the machines - like how the Snapmaws purify water and periodically jettison canisters if you hang around and watch them for a while.

[@tablescissors67]

You're excellent at reading, the speed and tone of your voice is soothing, but still clear ...it compliments the topics, but does not dominate. This is my new favorite channel.

[@timur5241]

Should've mentioned the fact, that after you kill a certain amount of machines of specific type, they receive armor upgrades. Easily noticeable on thunderjaws' and bellowbacks' "necks" I'm not sure if that's a thing in the sequel (Forbidden West), but eh...

[@christensolomon3679]

"Crab are a pinnacle of evolution..." Ah, a learned fellow. All things will become crabs eventually.

[@garfieldthecat1625]

I am absolutely obsessed with Horizon: Forbidden West right now and would live to see you cover all those incredible machines too !! Great work with these videos keep it up!!

[@chriskim5503]

I really don’t comment much, but just wanted to say I’ve been binge watching the whole channel for a few weeks, and now im just waiting on each upload! Love the content!!!

[@jasonvoorhees5180]

I absolutely adore the Machines and story in Horizon zero dawn

[@Autumny_Violet]

This is one of my favorite games, next to subnautica. Although I have not finished it, and haven't played it in months. This video is awesome and so is Curious Archive! :D

[@ThoughtPotato]

Great video! Love the "field notes" angle.

[@ultimus616]

I remember recommending this a while ago, I am so happy to see it on the channel, I was really looking forward to it

[@librus8680]

Well done on this remarkably engaging little journey! I've loved how their designs, clearly inspired by creatures of old, fill the same roles as their fleshy progenitors, but now working as an oddly coordinated collective to manage and encourage new growth - hands of steel carefully guiding life from the ashes of a bygone era. I utterly love studying the absurd level of detail put into all of these, and I've come across some observations of my own regarding their apparent roles in this new biosphere: - Striders appear to be a species threatened with extinction, though "obsolescence" may be a better term. They've been seldom seen as of late, replaced more with Broadheads and Chargers - a pair of similar-designed herbivores with more complex designs on their heads that were not documented here. A sign that the systems that guide this biosphere are not fully governed by laws of nature: an intelligence force, or forces, can supplant a species with another as it chooses. - Shell-walkers are not only absurdly protective of their cargo, but they also possess emergency backup measures if aggressors manage to remove the heavy clamps holding their cargo in place. Their larger claw can unfurl into a backup clamp, them willingly sacrificing their offensive potential as they take a defensive stance, putting more power into their shield-generating claw while being much more wary of their assailants. - Snapmaws not only lie about in waterways to recharge in the sun, but they also appear to passively dredge up unwanted compounds in the river, refine them, store them on sacs on their backsides, and then shake them free for other machines, like Glinthawks, to carry off back to their hive-like factories. They really don't spare any effort in turning any and all unwanted elements they are tasked with cleansing and repurposing them into ways to manufacture more of themselves. - Bellowbacks may not just be transports. Their green counterparts, sloshing with huge reserves of biofuel, may also function as a means to provide controlled burns to forests that have grown beyond what their systems deem suitable. The icy variants then may act as walking fire extinguishers, ensuring the burn is properly contained. - Tallnecks appear to be malfunctioning to some sort of degree. They normally do not appear to walk in their odd circuits, since their huge disks not only function as communication arrays, but also a means to map the area and thus instruct machines on where to go and what needs doing. Whatever element that guides them is absent now, and they seem to wander in confused circles, patiently awaiting for this voice to return. The absence has been going on for quite some time, though - in some regions, the resident Tallneck has begun to bore a canyon into the ground from their constant walking.

[@BusierMold58]

So, guess the Archivist has been confirmed as a Timelord.

[@alfreioblanoreborn3537]

Gotta say this is awesome! I really look forward to part 2!

[@nemo1716]

I HAVE AWAITED A VIDEO SUCH AS THIS FOR YEARS. Thank you so much for your work on this. To me these machines are a stand out against other robotic/mechanized animals due to the biological nature of their design, and how you can see those systems functioning in-game. All the best to you.

[@DarthBHorse]

loving the curious archivist lore

[@OkumuraRyuk]

This was BEAUTIFUL… I believe we DO want more of this type of videos also.

[@simonmatthews1399]

I had the thought that you could do this ages ago but never suggested it but it is still great that you are covering it

[@tammie1078]

this was so professional done, down to the speaking like we are on a real tour and guide to these amazing machines, to how its all presented, this was inspiring and beautiful, I hope you do the second game as well. I like how you put yourself as if you were a traveler yourself.

[@TheGreatAuk]

i always wanted a walking with dinosaurs type documentary about these machines

[@zoroux2826]

Wake up babe, new curious archive post

[@Xenozfan2]

I've been WAITING for this video! HZD has one of the most unique "bio"spheres of any game I've seen. Can't wait for the next one!

[@pailhorsegaming6762]

I’m loving your content! And I appreciate the subtitles! I hope you make more videos in this awesome style!

[@ckinggaming5bucketmadness766]

When fighting in this game in the early game, experience is key Each creature you fight has its own abilities and size, and different weak points Of course, sometimes there are enemies you’ll need a better weapon for it to be an easy battle And some enemies require you to use every trap you have while you’re undetected, like stalkers, bellowbacks, and thunderjaws(in my experience) And others, require you to cheese the game(can you guess which one I’m talking about, it’s apart of a mission where you fight a thunderjaw that killed me multiple times before I eventually turned the difficulty all the way down to fight it)

[@nenmaster5218]

Telltale Atheist, i recommend him. Especially his Kat Kerr Videos if you love to laugh.

[@J-manli]

Horizon IMO is the closest thing we have to an open world Monster Hunter game. We fight larger than life monsters where we are heavily rewarded for knowing the monsters' weaknesses and weakspots.

[@justtoms3773]

Played this game recently and absolutely loved it

[@applejuice3562]

Bro, I've literally been looking for a concept like this this is awesome.

[@jasoncherry1256]

Anyone else wanna fall asleep to this guys videos? And I don’t mean that these videos are boring or uninteresting. His voice is just so soothing and relaxing lol

[@supercharged5-39]

some spoilers for the story: additionally a lot of the predatory machines (sabertooths, thunderjaws) were made specifically to kill humans because humans started hunting machines making the AI that designs them decide they weren't deserving of being alive

[@darkonedbc]

Remind you another movie?

[@BiggerBossN313]

@@darkonedbc?

[@arturosandovalsaito2704]

I never expected you to do a video about the "biology" of these robots. Good job.

[@CaptainMug]

Requested and delivered wonderfully! Amazing perspective and wonderful way to revisit this land after all these years.

[@rkirk]

I'm pretty sure we'll see this channel hit 500k subs soon because the content is so consistently good. A lot of KZbin is not the best, but there are real gems like this here that keep me coming back for each new video.

[@PaladinGuy]

An interesting observation I discovered about the snapmaw; while I was once planning an ambush of a group of 3 I noticed 1 of them come on land. This one released several pods from it's body and then returned to the waters. These pods contained chillwater, meaning that the snapmaws primary contribution to the greater machine ecosystem is the production of chillwater for other machines, much like lancehorns. Also, without spoiling anything, most of the smaller animals that are still around all have a great use for humans. Boars and goats are hardy creatures that can survive in many environments and provide several useful resources (skin, horns/tusks, meat), same applies to an extent to foxes, rabbits, raccoons, geese, turkeys, salmon, and trout too.

[@alyseleem2692]

Yep. Noticed it,too. They cover them like eggs. No wonder they hate it when I get too close. I stole a few pods🙂

[@Tuzszo]

IIRC the snapmaw's primary role in the mechosystem is actually water purification. If I had to guess, they probably were depositing chillwater canisters that were saturated with heavy metals or other pollutants for collection and reprocessing by other designs.

[@ryannovel8892]

Can we all appreciate his Vocabularies??? I mean... Every words sentences were really well thought! I never get bored listening to his narration! And I also learn a lot from him! Thank you so much!

[@HooplaCakeMace]

One of the most underrated fictional ecosystems I have ever seen, and an excellent game as well. Great video!!

[@thethirdchimpanzee]

James P. Hogan did this decades ago in "Code of the Lifemaker" ("Futurama" did it too.) But in "Lifemaker,", an alien probe, crashed on Saturn's moon Titan. It was probably a type of Von Neumann machine, but it had the ability to self-repair to a certain extent, using smaller microbots and nanobots, but something happens, I believe, that wipes out the core memory of the main probe, the A.I. is destroyed, it loses it's self-awareness, it becomes just a dumb machine, and all of the little robots are left to their own devices, and so they reproduced, like cells, and some copies were not true to the original form...maybe because of a stray cosmic ray or something in the make or programing wasn't copied perfectly (a "mutation")...most were useless or detrimental...but some gave the copy an advantage that let it make more copies better...some of the micro and nanobots learned to work in tandem, and even *combine*...sometimes different types combined (basically synthetic multicellular life)...and after hundreds of thousands or millions of years later, you got a whole diverse robotic *ecosystem*, and even intelligent robotic life.

[@aedanranson1092]

im gonna have to check code of the lifemaker out, thanks for the recommendation!!

[@horriblepuppets1279]

love your content keep it up!!

[@jocelinarene1951]

I cannot wait for another video on Zero Dawn's or Forbidden West's machines. I absolutly love those games and seeing videos on its ecology is always a treat ^^

[@B.Jordan314]

Man, nice Job. These videos are great, I can tell that you put a boatload of work into each second of them!! Keep it up

[@hawkeyestegosaurus5680]

This was so cool! I always wanted to play Horizon but I don't have a console and my PC just isn't up for the task. So pumped for the next part!

[@akumadaYT]

Ahh shit, here we go again! I'm loving the exploration of different video game's biology, and I'd love to see a biology of halo video, as it's got plenty of interesting species

[@SchroederActual]

This is an awesome video! Almost like these are personal findings from you actually being there, with no Aloy and a notepad. Very cool. Cheers!

[@lukaseckart8583]

Amazing. You are probably my favorite youtuber for making quality spec evo content like this!

[@garrettlich7140]

O hell yeah I love this game series I’d love to see you talk to someone with mechanical engineering and robotics about this game as well as going into more detail O and a study of the tribe’s cultural evolution

[@turtlestheturtle]

I literally just got into horizon. I was so interested in what they robots’ biology was. Perfect timing!

[@loveforbeauty13]

These videos oddly bring so much comfort to me

[@AnkhAnanku]

I love that touch of the rockets on the underside of the strider’s wing analogs

[@Rhyme_Zil14]

I open up my notifications and see this: *A HZD VIDEO* My day has been made :)

[@mho...]

Always like the Documentaries taking a fictional World serious! (specially with such a well fleshed-out Universe like ZeroDawn) , nicely done! Could have been a TemplinInstitute one 😅

[@swampertnite7793]

Will be waiting for next ep of the adventure and research

[@Jaws10214]

One of the most underrated channels on this platform. CA needs a corporate budget.

[@mineterragaming1796]

you should do a documentary on Ark: Survival Evolved. There are plenty of creatures to observe

[@tjarkschweizer]

Don't you mean plenty of bullshit to observe? Anyway Ark doesn't have interesting AI. The creatures just walk around mindlessly. They don't have any additional animations. Even the combat isn't entertaining. Not to mention that the game lack's actual ecosystems. It simply wouldn't make for a good video.

[@bagea]

you should do an episode about the eternal cylinder

[@nemogotchemo5863]

Wow this is such a detailed and fun video. Definitely subscribing to see more documentary-esque videos like this!

[@alexwood6284]

This is soo cool please do a another

[@noobiusmaximus6314]

I thought a fun episode would be the strange hybrid animals of Avatar (the last airbender). It doesn't quite fit the theme of the channel, but they are cool designs.

[@jdfigs5916]

Awesome I love horizon zero dawn

[@myfeelsRvalid]

I loved this video..it reminded me of when I'd watch National Geographic as a kid. But also so discriptive. I never would have thought about taking this kind of approach for a video. Great job!

[@Roadvoice]

I find astonishing how creative and superbly detailed are the concept of the machines, the plot and gameplay of this magnificent game, and yet, most of the humans (specially Alloy) are so devoid of charisma and personality...

[@acemarvel1564]

When life found its way for millions of years Technology seeked to be far superior

[@orange_turtle3412]

Despite their synthetic nature, these machines do behave as animals in pretty much every way. Its even canon that some are capable of reproducing and creating new machines.

[@alyseleem2692]

Whoah! slow down there, buddy! I know they can gather the materials for making other machines, but is there really a machine that can canonically make more machines? I've played the games, but then, there are comics. 🤔

[@winoblio]

@@alyseleem2692 that machine is the Horus, which has the ability to create more scarabs (corruptors) and kopeshes (deathbringers). The Horus is part of FAS's chariot line, not one of Hephaestus'. Edit: by Hephaestus I also mean Gaia

[@alyseleem2692]

@@winoblio Yeah. Good point. But I meant the other machines.

[@winoblio]

@@alyseleem2692 as far as I know there aren't any reproducing machines made by Gaia/ Hephaestusbut that sounds like an interesting idea for a dlc machine.

[@alyseleem2692]

@@winoblio Indeed. Scary,too...... I wouldn't wanna fight that.

[@DouglasHollingsworth1]

I need to play this more ... I got out of the Embrace and got distracted by other stuff for a while, but it's SO BEAUTIFUL.

[@jerrybailey5797]

Fantastic, this is a truely amazing documentary loving the diverse mechanical animal life forms

[@zombiedemon1762]

What kind of biology would come from a living organism made of gases and electricity? Can we get a planet of self-aware intelligent storm clouds? Or maybe even flood a normal storm cloud full of nano-machines to animate it artificially.

[@floridaman6572]

That’d be interesting but I feel like the problem would be getting down the shape of the organism. A creature made of gas would be more effective without a specific form than with one, this would make differentiating between different species a difficult and boring task. Not to mention a living entity made of gas is likely not possible. Interesting idea tho!

[@zombiedemon1762]

@@floridaman6572 . Well alternatively you can make them like biological balloons. Solid skin wrapped around a big gaseous brain..... but then I would wonder how they can eat and reproduce.

[@zombiedemon1762]

@@floridaman6572 . They probably only need one single species. And the idea was already for them to be amorphous.

[@zombiedemon1762]

@@floridaman6572 . Ah well NORMALLY yes it probably would be hard for gaseous life to exist. But maybe future nano-machines can build and animate a mass of gases.

[@floridaman6572]

@@zombiedemon1762 it’s still a cool idea, I was just saying that it would be difficult to work with. I’d love to see someone pull it off though.